MQS Management LLC Invests $340,000 in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM)

MQS Management LLC purchased a new stake in SLM Co. (NASDAQ:SLM) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 16,338 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $340,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of SLM. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of SLM by 1,373.3% in the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,326 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 1,236 shares during the last quarter. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC raised its holdings in SLM by 37.0% in the 1st quarter. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 1,828 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 494 shares during the last quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new position in SLM in the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of SLM by 39.5% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 2,976 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 843 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP grew its position in shares of SLM by 78.6% in the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,962 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 1,304 shares in the last quarter. 98.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SLM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on SLM from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of SLM from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 4th. Wedbush boosted their target price on shares of SLM from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on shares of SLM from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on SLM from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $24.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Robert S. Strong sold 4,500 shares of SLM stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.70, for a total value of $102,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 101,093 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,294,811.10. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 1.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

SLM Stock Performance

Shares of SLM stock opened at $22.07 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.41 and a beta of 1.15. The business has a 50-day moving average of $21.59 and a 200 day moving average of $21.23. SLM Co. has a 12 month low of $12.26 and a 12 month high of $23.95.

SLM (NASDAQ:SLM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The credit services provider reported $1.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.32. The firm had revenue of $783.28 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $368.97 million. SLM had a net margin of 24.67% and a return on equity of 41.84%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.10 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that SLM Co. will post 2.83 earnings per share for the current year.

SLM Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 5th were issued a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 5th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.99%. SLM’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.75%.

SLM Profile

SLM Corporation, through its subsidiaries, originates and services private education loans to students and their families to finance the cost of their education in the United States. It is also involved in the provision of retail deposit accounts, including certificates of deposit, money market accounts, and high-yield savings accounts; and interest-bearing omnibus accounts.